A Food Blog with Personality

Pancakes

A bonus of being a foodie blogger is that is gives you the perfect excuse to visit new places. And when a pancake parlour popped up in a charming little town not too far from my parent’s, welllll I just couldn’t say no! Olney is a favourite place of ours to go for a few hours – cute little shops and boutiques, an excellent monthly farmer’s market and a nice country park nearby to take the dog. Now this place has opened there’s yet another reason to visit.

Olney Pancake Parlour was the venue for a mum-daughter-sister date, and what a choice it was. Yes, it was insanely busy on a Saturday afternoon and, yes, service was a little slow. It was noisy with sugar-high children but that was all part of the charm. I do think perhaps table service would work slightly better, given the dishes were a little cold once the server eventually located the correct table, but that’s my biggest gripe.

With Olney being the birthplace of the pancake race, there’s already a fair bit of pressure on them to get their pancakes right, and thankfully they do. You can choose between a traditional Olney-style pancake (a little bit like a less sugary, less buttery version of a French crepe in my opinion) or a stack of fluffy American-style ones. There’s a whole host of savoury or sweet options, and vegan pancakes are available on request. Sounds good, right? The toppings were even better.

I went for the Terry’s Chocolate Orange (chocolate orange ganache, Terry’s chocolate orange, mandarin and chocolate sauce) on a traditional-style pancake and it was DELICIOUS. The orange flavour came through perfectly, cutting through the chocolate to ensure it wasn’t overly rich or sickly. The small scoop of ice-cream was just the right amount, and the addition of Terry’s Chocolate Orange segments on anything are fine by me.

My mum also join me on the traditional pancake front, going with an Apple & Blackberry Cinnamon Crumble. I really liked this, although she felt it was perhaps a tad overpriced, a little too sweet and far too much cinnamon. Well, I guess you can’t please everyone! Personally I loved the texture-combo, with the silky pancake, soft fruit filling and buttery biscuity crumble.

And then there’s was my sister’s Triple Chocolate Brownie American Stack (brownie chunks, chocolate sauce, Maltesers and Smarties). This was absolutely huge, and well worth the premium for the stack. I, quite predictably, had to help her out in order to finish it and can vouch for the fact that these were some of the best American pancakes I’ve eaten. Light, fluffy and just the right tough of sweetness. I definitely enjoyed this, though perhaps not the right choice for the faint-hearted!

Oh, and if you’re not in a pancake mood then there’s a whole host of other options – salads, breakfasts, sandwiches, paninis, jacket potatoes. But quite frankly if you’re not in a pancake mood I’d perhaps suggest you go elsewhere and leave a table spare for me! Now all that’s left is for me to return and try their pancake-themed Afternoon Tea…

Or, how many popular food trends can I get into one blog post. Because yep, these are vegan. The ‘jam’ is raw. The ‘jam’ uses chia seeds. The only reason vegan is in inverted commas here is due to the fact that I used normal, albeit lactose free, milk. And didn’t check my chocolate label. They work fabulously with dairy-free milk, and I’m sure if you are actually fussed about the vegan-ness you can grab some suitable chocolate.

For the budgeters out there, Sainsbury’s 35p Basics white chocolate works perfectly well. And coconut oil doesn’t have to be expensive either, I’ve finally tracked some some branded by KTC, its stocked in the World Foods section of big supermarkets and is a purse-friendly £2.55 for a BIG jar. Far cheaper than anywhere else I’ve tried. Chia seeds are expensive anywhere but Whole Foods, where a decent size packet costs under £2. So with this and the rapsberries its not the cheapest of brunches. But it’s damn yummy…

The raw raspberry jam is a bit of a relevation for me. I’m not a huge lover of regular jams, finding them sticky, sweet and not tart enough. This is slightly more of a coulis texture, but it is satisfyingly sharp, a hint of sweetness and almost pure raspberry flavour. Best of all there’s no faffing with making it, and it keeps in the fridge for a few days.

The white chocolate pancakes are sweet, slightly chocolatey and surprisingly light considering their ingredients list. They do, however, burn easily whilst taking a while to cook. Not one to make when lacking patience (ahem…). These were inspiring by a recipe from Miel Cafe, but I’ve altered them to cut down the sugar slightly. Despite this mine are still super sweet!

Ingredients (to serve two generously)

For the jam – 1 tablespoon of chia seeds, two tablespoons of water, a small handful of raspberries

Start by making the jam. Soak the chia seeds in the water for at least ten minutes. Then tip into a blender (I used a mini food chopper) with the raspberries and blitz until it’s your preferred consistency. Transfer to a jar and pop in the fridge.

For the pancakes, melt 50g of the white chocolate in a bowl, along with the coconut oil. Chop the rest of the chocolate into small chunks. Add the flour, baking powder and salt to the chocolatey-oil and mix well. Loosen with milk, a little at a time, until you have a pancake-like mixture. It shouldn’t be as thin as a crepe mixture, you’re looking for something similar to an American pancake mix.

Heat some oil on a low heat, and add a little pancake mix. Sprinkle over a few chocolate chunks immediately, then leave until the underside is golden. Flip (careful – they are a little more fragile that normal pancakes), cook until the other side matches, then keep warm until all the mix is used. Serve your vegan white chocolate pancakes with the raw raspberry jam and any spare chocolate chunks.

They might be a bit cliche now, but I could totally get on the vegan bandwagon if it involved dishes like this! I’m not a huge advocate of the raw trend in general (I do like my food cooked!), but I can see the benefit in things like this. The raw jam is just so much fresher!

It’s no secret that I love a good plate of pancakes. My favourite are crepe-style, thin, crispy and buttery, made sharp with lemon and sweetened just a little with sugar. I also don’t have the patience to make thin pancakes, so my go-to is an fluffy American style stack. I also love adding blueberries.

Now I can do this guilt free. A basic stack of these pancakes comes in at 250 calories (via My Fitness Pal) and they certainly don’t taste in any way ‘diet friendly’ – you could probably make them healthier by using a fry-light spray too, I had to use butter as I’m moving out sooner and didn’t have anything else!

Now, here I’ve added blueberries and after playing round with the recipe I’ve decided that if you add berries, add a tablespoon of oats too. This supports the mixture and just holds it a little better. Some recipes also add a little sugar but I’ve found that these are plenty sweet enough, even without a drizzle of honey. In fact I like to serve with a spoonful of natural yoghurt to balance things out a bit. However you serve them, these are an easy and healthy pancake recipe that will see off any cravings without leaving you in a carb-induced slump. Perfect!

Ingredients

1 banana

1 egg

Optional: 1 handful of blueberries, 1 tbsp of oats

Mash up your banana as smooth as possible. I’ve always found that microwaving for around 30 seconds helps to get it as gooey as possible – this is especially useful if your banana isn’t extra ripe. Beat in the egg – and any additions.

Melt a slither of butter in a frying pan over a medium heat, add two tablespoons of the mixture and fry until golden brown on bottom. Flip carefully, cook the other side then transfer to the oven to keep warm. Repeat until all the mix is used, and keep the pancakes small so they are easier to flip!

Serve. I like mine with honey and yoghurt, but forgoing blueberries and adding nutella is also a good option…

I didn’t even know I liked blueberries until recently. Not for any particular reason other than they are SO expensive. Who has £2 to spend on a teeny tub?! Not me! But when I spied those lovely yellow stickers reducing them to 30p, I threw a few packets in my basket. Turns out that I really like them, and they freeze really well. A winner in my book, and I’ll definitely be hoping for more in the reduced aisle!

Plus it’s PANCAKE DAY next week! I wouldn’t be a good blogger if I didn’t provide you with a good recipe (though see my indulgent nutella version, or my boyfriend’s traditional crepes). This one is the perfect mix between healthy and naughty. It’s not quite as good for you as these…I’m still experimenting with banana pancakes. But they are significantly better for you than my nutella ones! And they don’t require any topping, though I added some sneaky honey.

The best part of all? This amount makes two servings, but they reheat with a blast in the microwave really, really well. This makes Monday Morning pancakes a reality…

Ingredients

1 handful of blueberries

1 egg

1 tablespoon of creme fraiche (I used fat-free)

A splash of milk

3 tablespoons of flour (possibly slightly more or less)

1 flat teaspoon baking powder

A small amount of butter, for frying (or use an oil spray, I keep meaning to pick one up!)

I like my blueberries a bit squished, so I microwaved them just to warm through, then mashed a few with my fork. That’s entirely optional!

Put the egg in a bowl or jug, add the creme fraiche and milk, and whisk to combine.

Add the flour gradually, stopping when you have a thick batter.

Add the baking powder and give it a final whisk to combine before stirring the blueberries through.

Fry in a little melted butter until the top is bubbling, then flip and continue to cook the other side. Both sides should be golden and slightly crispy. Keep warm in an oven until all are cooked.

To serve, pile onto a plate. If keeping for the next day, cool quickly. Reheat by microwaving in a single layer until hot – about 1 minute.

Enjoy!

What is your favourite pancake topping? Will you be celebrating pancake day?

I loveeeeee pancakes. Seriously, I cannot get enough of them. My mum used to make pancakes most weekends when we were growing up (my favourite topping was lemon and sugar, ate outside for reasons discussed here), and now my boyfriend alternates between cooking me a fry-up and his amazing crepes on visit weekends. I know, I’m such a lucky girl! It does mean though that on weekends where I’m all alone, I miss my pancake fix. Not anymore!

I’ve managed to come up with a recipe for fluffy, light, flavoursome American pancakes, in just the right serving for a (greedy) single person. So many of the recipes I found serve two, and I’m not quite that greedy. This recipe makes around 8 small pancakes – trust me they are quite small, this isn’t just a giant plate!

For the photos here I’ve made a nutella stack – sandwiching each pancake with a splodge of nutella. The effect was chocolatey and stodgy – just what I needed whilst recovering from the flu and moping about after visiting my girls in Canterbury the day before. I’ve had these drizzled with honey too, and they were just as delicious. Keep an eye out for a fruity version soon too!

Now, I make this recipe by eye, straight into the jug (anything to reduce washing up!) so here we go; Grab a 1/2 pint jug, crack and beat an egg. Top up with milk to between 150 and 200ml. Whisk in 2.5 tablespoons of plain flour, and 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder. You want a really thick, but still pourable, batter – add more milk/flour as necessary. Some recipes add a little sugar to the batter, or some melted butter. I’d rather save the calories for the topping.

Melt a teeny bit of butter in a frying pan, and pour in a small amount of batter. It spreads surprisingly far for being so thick! Fry over a relaitvely high heat until the upside is lightly bubbling, and no longer gooey looking – but don’t let the underside burn! Flip over and continue cooking for a few seconds, until both sides are golden. Transfer to a plate, and keep warm in a low oven.

If you’re making a nutella stack, spread each pancake with a little nutella before popping in the oven.

There you have it – the perfect American pancakes for one. I’m itching to try these with maple syrup and bacon, but I reckon that will have to wait for a date brunch!

So, do you like pancakes? More importantly, what’s your topping of choice?!

Pancake Day (as its commonly referred to) was never really a big thing in my family. We actually had them at least once a month growing up so they weren’t really a treat, though it was pretty much the only day of the year I was allowed to put ice cream, nutella AND sprinkles on the same plate! Now I’m at university Pancake Day is a much bigger occasion; last year the campus stores were completely out of flour and eggs by lunchtime. Though I must confess, me and my housemates still eat pancakes at least once a month…

Now because I can’t ignore that fact that it isn’t just Pancake Day…Pancake Day gets its name after the fried batter recipe traditionally eaten on Shrove Tuesday; they were designed to use up the ‘rich food’ of eggs and flour before the 40 days Lent. This BBC article actually explains the significance of pancakes to tradition in a way I could never do, so have a read if you are interested!

Now onto the yummy stuff…

This year me and the girls are combining Pancake Day with a girly night in. After a long day of lectures we’re cooking up Toad in the Hole, and then gorging on pancakes. And maybe doing each others nails too! Because I knew (1) I’d never remember to take pictures, and (2) it would be too late to post the recipe, I had an excuse to make pancakes with my boyfriend for a chilled Saturday breakfast this weekend. The sacrifices I make for you guys!

Normally I’d use a simple batter recipe, but my boyfriend favours a crepe style pancake, so when eating with him we stick to Deila’s recipe from her Crepe Suzette dish. I’m not going to reproduce it here due to copyright, so have a look at the link.

My top tips for pancakes are:

Fry in butter. It might be unhealthy, but it just takes better. However I do like the next few alternative is a low-calories oil spray – normal oil always makes them heavy.

Get the pan and fat really hot before adding the batter.

Swirl the batter round the hot pan quickly to get a thin and even pancake.

Leave the pancake alone until it moves when you shake the pan – otherwise it will stick.

I like to sprinkle my sugar as soon as my pancake is out of the pan – whilst it is still very hot. It then goes a bit syrupy. Yum yum!

My favourite pancake topping is the simple lemon and sugar (my tastes have become somewhat more sophisticated since my days of preferring ice cream and sprinkles!), but I am also partial to a mix of nutella with chopped nuts.